Alina Habba, a former personal defense lawyer for Donald Trump who has since become a prominent member of the president’s inner circle, was sworn in today as the interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey while pledging support for the man who appointed her.
“From being outside the courtroom steps defending him and defending our great nation, I saw the most resilience I’ve ever seen in my life,” Habba said of Trump following her swearing-in. “This man kept fighting for America, and I’m just so honored that now I get to fight for the state of New Jersey. I will do a good job, sir. I will clean it up, and we’re going to Make New Jersey Great Again.”
Habba, a 41-year-old native of Summit who now lives in Bernardsville, rose to fame – and controversy – during Trump’s period out of office, when the president enlisted large teams of lawyers to defend himself from a number of criminal charges filed against him. Habba became known as one of the most aggressive members of Trump’s team, even earning reprimands from the judge overseeing one of her cases. After he won the presidency a second time, Trump named Habba as counselor to the president.
That role did not last long, however; Trump announced in a social media post at the beginning of this week that Habba would become New Jersey’s interim top prosecutor, replacing John Giordano, a Philadelphia lawyer who had been in the job for just three weeks. (Giordano is now on his way to become ambassador to Namibia instead.)
In the days since, Habba has taken a more directly political posture than most people chosen for nonpartisan prosecutorial roles like U.S. Attorney; she said the day of her appointment that Senator Cory Booker and Gov. Phil Murphy “have failed the state of New Jersey,” and she told the pro-Trump news channel Real America’s Voice yesterday that she’d like to play an explicit role in helping Republicans win elections in New Jersey.
“We could turn New Jersey red. I really do believe that,” Habba said. “There is momentum right now – President Trump’s agenda is working, the American people voted for it, 80 million people voted for it. And I think New Jersey is absolutely close to getting there. Hopefully, while I’m there, I can help that cause.”
(During that same interview, Habba, who has no past experience as a prosecutor, also laid out some of her early targets as U.S. Attorney, among them the mayor of Paterson, sanctuary cities, and diversity, equity, and inclusion policies in schools. She also implied that she may have not originally wanted to take the job; “I don’t want to leave the White House, it makes me sad,” she said she told Trump when he offered her the position.)
Murphy and Booker, despite Habba attacking them by name, have avoided saying anything negative about the new U.S. Attorney thus far; Booker declined to comment when asked on Wednesday, while Murphy told News12 that Habba “seems like a very significant talent.” Senator Andy Kim, though, was not as willing to give Habba a pass.
“The announcement of Alina Habba to be interim US Attorney in New Jersey is an unacceptable partisan choice that will leave New Jersey ill-prepared to take on dangerous challenges like gun violence and drug trafficking,” Kim said in a statement earlier this week. “We must do better to keep our communities safe.”
What still remains unknown is whether Kim, Booker, and their fellow senators will get to weigh in on Habba at one point. Habba can stay in the post on an interim basis for a limited time – 120 days, in theory, though NJ Spotlight News reported that she could argue she should be allowed to stay for longer – before she either has to be approved by a majority of New Jersey’s District Court judges or confirmed by the Senate. Trump hasn’t said, though, whether he intends to nominate Habba for a full term, and Booker said on Wednesday that he didn’t know, either.
At today’s swearing-in, Trump said that Habba would tackle crime in New Jersey and “stop the graft and corruption in Trenton.”
“As U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Alina will work tirelessly to weed out crime and corruption and restore law and order to the Garden State,” Trump said. “It’s a great place. I think it’s highly underrated. It’s a great place to be and to live, and we all love it.”
And Giordano – himself a replacement for State Sen. Doug Steinhardt (R-Lopatcong), Trump’s initial pick for the U.S. Attorney spot before he turned it down – said in a statement of his own that he was looking forward to his future roles in the Trump administration.
“Serving President Trump and the citizens of my home state of New Jersey has been a great honor,” Giordano said. “I am particularly proud of the impactful and meaningful work of this office and our law enforcement partners to uphold the rule of law and safeguard our nation. I look forward to continuing to serve the President in my forthcoming role, and I remain committed to advancing the important work of his Administration.”